Chapter 596: The Carrot and the Stick

Xiang Xi obviously didn’t really believe Qin Lie.

The entire time he’d been speaking to Qin Lie, Xu Changsheng and Xu Jiadong had been trying to convince him that they should leave.

Both wore anxious looks on their faces. Neither wanted to stay here even a second longer.

Everyone on the side of the Xing Family were currently chasing after the retreating enemy alongside the eight god corpses. Xing Yumiao, Xing Yuyuan, and the Bloodthirsty Dragon were busy attacking Xiahou Sheng.

This was the best opportunity for Xiang Xi and his men to escape!

The two enforcers thought that Qin Lie was just trying to buy time for the Xing Family to surround and kill them.

They knew exactly how ruthless the Xing brothers could be. Their rebellious actions on this day would definitely lead to the crazed retaliation of the brothers, which was why they were in a hurry to leave.

“What do you have that can increase Gold Sun Island’s strength?” Xiang Xi asked, a solemn expression on his face. “Even if you could improve it somewhat, there’s no way it would be able to resist the combined might of three Silver rank forces!”

After a moment of hesitation, Xiang Xi glanced at the Xing brothers and said, “What happened today… has happened. From now on, we can never return to the past. We cannot stay in Gold Sun Island and continue working with them. They definitely won’t tolerate our betrayal!”

“Enforcer Xiang!” Xing Shengnan shouted from below. “We of the Xing Family let you down! My brothers aren’t so closed-minded. They wouldn’t treat you as an enemy!”

Xiang Xi smiled bitterly as he shook his head in response. He clearly didn’t take Xing Shengnan’s assurances seriously.

He knew exactly what kind of person Xing Yuyuan was.

“Even if you wish to leave, you can’t. Not now,” Qin Lie said. He frowned and then sighed. “If you leave right this moment, I will summon four god corpses and have them hunt you and your men down to the best of their ability.”

Xiang Xi and the other two enforcers suddenly went pale, their faces wracked with worry.

They initially thought that Qin Lie would ignore them and allow them to leave, yet it still came down to this in the end.

“I haven’t offended you, have I, my friend?” Xiang Xi smiled bitterly.

He honestly didn’t wish to clash with Qin Lie. Forget the fact that Qin Lie was the direct disciple of Forefather Terminator—the eight god corpses alone were enough to destroy Gold Sun Island. What could he possible do to defend himself against Qin Lie?

Qin Lie thought to himself for a moment and eventually decided to come clean.

“I don’t have a choice,” he said. “There are some secrets that I don’t want to reveal to others at the moment. You may not understand what the appearance of the god corpses means, but everyone else… they’ll know the second they hear about it. I don’t want you to leave because, once you leak this news to the rest of the world, you’ll attract an infinite amount of trouble.”

“What do you mean?” Xiang Xi asked, failing to understand.

Xu Changsheng, however, was momentarily stunned. A moment later, he looked at Qin Lie, a strange look in his eyes, and cried, “It can’t be! Are you related to the search for the remains of ancient elites that is happening all across the Land of Chaos?”

As of late, every Silver rank force in the Land of Chaos had been preoccupied with this matter.

Information about the remains of ancient elites escaping the Graveyard of Gods had recently spread to every corner of the Land of Chaos.

Did Gold Sun Island not send out three Flowing Gold Fire Phoenixes and five ships to search nearby regions of the sea for these remains?

News of the eight headless god corpses escaping from their shackles in the depths of the sea near the Heavenly Fissure Continent had spread at the same time.

Everyone knew that the god corpses and the Graveyard of Gods shared a strange connection. If someone were to connect the dots and analyze them closely, they would naturally figure out the secret behind Qin Lie and the others.

Xiang Xi came to the same sudden realization and shouted, “All of you have something to do with the remains of ancient elites?”

Qin Lie smiled and nodded. “They’re right below us in the depths of the sea.”

Every Xing Family clansman that could hear their conversation grew excited upon hearing Qin Lie reveal this. Their eyes blazed with the light of desire.

Xiang Xi pondered for a moment then sighed. He bowed his head and said, “I guess we really can’t leave anymore.”

The fact that Qin Lie simply told them where the remains of the ancient beings were meant that he definitely wouldn’t let them leave. If they tried, Qin Lie would probably hunt the down in a frenzied manner.

Xiang Xi was only in the early stage of the Fragmentation Realm. Xu Changsheng and Xu Jiadong were only at the peak of the Fulfillment Realm.

They wouldn’t be able to oppose Qin Lie in any way.

“Don’t worry,” Qin Lie said, his voice taking on an inviting tone. “I can guarantee your safety and… who knows? Maybe you will even profit from this…”

“Aaaaooooooo!”

At that moment, the Bloodthirsty Dragon roared furiously, shaking its huge bloody tail to create a whirlpool of blood.

This sanguine whirlpool instantly sucked Xiahou Sheng into it.

Thick waves of blood surged throughout the whirlpools, and bloody bubbles filled with the stench of iron appeared on its surface.

At the center of the whirlpool, Xiahou Sheng struggled with all his might, but his movements gradually slowed. The whirlpool sucked all of his blood out of him, and his life energy swiftly left his body.

The Xing brothers hastily escaped from the bloody bone dragon in shock, frightened by the idea of getting caught in that attack.

They had already dealt a grievous wound to Xiahou Sheng before the bloody whirlpool swallowed him up. The whirlpool then dealt him another grievous blow and instantly sucked all of the blood from his body.

The Xing brothers watched Xiahou Sheng closely. They knew he had no chance of escaping and would definitely die.

“A great kill!” Although severely wounded, Xing Shengnan floated into the air, her ascent somewhat unsteady. Her eyes shone with satisfaction as she gritted her teeth and softly said, “In the past, you killed my little brother with your own hands! Today, my little brother killed you with his! All of this was preordained by the unseen world of spirits. The butcher covered in the blood of the Xing Family was always destined for such an end!”

Unfathomable joy filled every fiber of the Xing brothers as they watched the bloody whirlpool devour Xiahou Sheng.

The desire to return to the Heavenly Calamity Continent and cut Xiahou Sheng into ten thousand pieces had haunted them day and night for the past forty years.

During all the times they snuck into the Heavenly Calamity Continent and took revenge upon martial practitioners of the three great families, they imagined encountering Xiahou Sheng and all of the cruel bloody ways they would kill him.

Unfortunately, they never found the opportunity to fulfill this desire.

If Qin Lie hadn’t appeared out of the blue and used ruthless means to turn the situation around, they would’ve followed their seniors and little brother to their graves. Xiahou Sheng would have eliminated every seed of hope.

As they watched Xiahou Sheng die a slow death within the bloody whirlpool, Xing Yumiao and Xing Yuyuan couldn’t help but glance at Qin Lie in the distance.

Gratitude filled their eyes.

—They now approved of him from the bottom of their hearts.

“Jiang Hao is still out there,” Qin Lie reminded them in a soft voice. “This is your territory. I hope that none of our enemies manage to leave here alive. I wish to keep all traces of us hidden.”

He paused for a moment and then said, “The god corpses will coordinate with you.”

“Understood.” Xing Yumiao nodded.

He and Xing Yuyuan then shot through the air like two rays of golden light, swiftly heading in the direction that Jiang Hao had escaped.

The largest god corpse moved in that direction as well, running across the sea as though it were on flat land. It roared and swung its enormous arms, destroying a crystalline war chariot in the process.

The god corpse released a terrifying chaotic aura that transformed into a seal that barred the path of fleeing Heavenly Sea Pavilion martial practitioners.

Those martial practitioners abruptly slammed into that invisible wall of energy and fell from the sky, eventually being swatted like flies and devoured by the god corpses below.

This entire scene was bloody and brutal. After realizing that escape was impossible, many martial practitioners decided to commit suicide in an explosion of blood rather than being eaten alive, making blood rain through the sky every so often.

The low-level martial practitioners that did this had no chance at surviving in the face of such absolute power.

All of a sudden, a crystalline war chariot floated into the air to hover beside Qin Lie. It carried Song Tingyu and the others, all of whom looked at ease now that they knew he had accomplished his goals.

Since they no longer needed to hide their appearances, Song Tingyu, Xie Jingxuan,and Xue Moyan finally revealed their faces.

Song Tingyu and Xie Jingxuan weren’t martial practitioners from the Land of Chaos. Their incredible beauty may have been out of this world, but they only caused others to stare at Qin Lie with envy.

The reaction to Xue Moyan, on the other hand, was quite different.

The moment she tore away her disguise and revealed her true face, every Gold Sun Island martial practitioner boiled over with surprise.

“M-Miss Xue? Heavens, it’s actually the direct disciple of Illusory Demon Sect’s sect master!”

“It’s Xue Moyan!”

This revelation stunned everyone present, Xing Family clansman and Gold Sun Island martial practitioner alike. All of them wore blatant looks of awe.

After all, Gold Sun Island was a vassal force of Illusory Demon Sect. Whenever he encountered Xue Moyan in Illusory Demon Sect in the past, even Xing Yumiao had to show utmost respect.

Xiang Xi might be revered in Gold Sun Island, but he was not even qualified to see Xue Moyan within Illusory Demon Sect.

Her sudden appearance intimidated Gold Sun Island’s martial practitioners even further.

Her presence alone made Xiang Xi and his men even more obedient.